Holography is a technique that allows the light scattered from an object to be recorded and later reconstructed so that it appears as if the object is in the same position relative to the recording medium as it was when recorded. The image changes as the position and orientation of the viewing system changes in exactly the same way as if the object was still present, thus making the recorded image appear three dimesional. The technique of holography can also be used to optically store, retrieve, and process information. While holography is commonly used to display static 3-D pictures, it is not yet possible to generate arbitrary scenes by a holographic volumetric display. Holography was discovered in 1947 by Hungarian physicist Denes Habor work for which he received the Nobel Prize in 1971. It was made possible by pioneering work in the field of physics by other scientists who resolved technical issues that previously made advancements impossible. The discovery was an unexpected result of research into improving electron microscopes at the British Thompson-Houston Company in Rugby, England.One of the most promising recent advances in the short history of holography has been the mass production of low- cost solid state lazers.

Friday, February 20, 2009

The Sombrero Galaxy (also known as M104 or NGC 4594) is an unbarred spiral galaxy in the constalation Virgo. It has a bright nucleus, an unusually large central bulge, and a prominent dust lane in its inclined disk. The dark dust lane and the bulge give this galaxy the appearance of a sombrero. The galaxy has an apparant brightness of 9.0, making it a galaxy that can easily be seen with amateur telescopes. The large bulge, the central huge black hole, and the dust lane all attract the attention of professional astronomers. As noted above, this galaxy's most striking feature is the dust lane that crosses in front of the bulge of the galaxy. This dust lane is actually a symmetric ring that encloses the bulge of the galaxy. Most of the cold atomic hydrogen gas and the dust lies within this ring. The ring might also contain most of the Sombrero Galaxy's cold molecular gas, although this is an inference based on observations with low resolution and weak detections. Additional observations are needed to confirm that the Sombrero galaxy's molecular gas is constrained to the ring. The Sombrero Galaxy has a relatively large number of globular clusters. Observational comparable to other galaxies with large bulges. These results have been repeatedly used to demonstrate that the number of globular clusters in galaxies is thought to be related to the size of the galaxies' bulges. The surface density of the globular clusters generally follows the light profile of the bulge except for near the center of the galaxy.

Friday, January 30, 2009

Squids are cephalopods.which is greek for "head with feet". I chose this as my picture because "Blooper" from "Mariocart" has many similarities to a squid. Squid also shoot melanin out of their 10 tentacles. Squid have differentiated from their ancestral mollusks in such a way that the body plan has been condensed antero-posteriorly and extended dorso-ventrally. What before may have been the foot of the ancestor is now modified into a complex set of tentacles and highly developed sense organs. The shell of the ancestor has been lost, with only an internal gladius, or pen, remaining. The pen is a feather-shaped internal structure that supports the mantle of squid and serves as a site for muscle attachment. It is made of chitin-like substances. The main body mass of the squid is enclosed in the mantle, which has a swimming fin along each side. It should be noted that these fins, unlike in other marine organisms, are not the main source of ambulation in most species. The skin of the squid is covered in chromatophores, which enable the squid to change color to suit its surroundings, making it effectively invisible. The underside of the squid is also almost always lighter in color than the topside, in order to provide camoflague from both prey and predator.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

This is a show that I love with all my heart. It is about a doctor who everybody hates. However; this doctor is extremely clever and is teaching three students by the name of: Cameron, Chase, and Foreman.They hate House ,the doctor, for being hard on them, and for being racist, sexist, and every other "ist" there is. House has one friend by the name of Wilson, and a "kind of" easygoing boss named Cuddy. House is a terribly mean doctor, and hates people. His boss tries to put up with him, it is very difficult. House saves hundreds of lives, but does not care for the people he saves.This show is a scientific drama and is hilarious, and interesting.